Martin Scorsese would rather burn a film than let a studio ruin it, says long-time collaborator Thelma Schoonmaker
Jan. 31, 2024Exclusive: Legendary editor Thelma Schoonmaker talks battling studios with Martin Scorsese
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Film editor Thelma Schoonmaker has been a long-time collaborator of Martin Scorsese’s, working with him on his most recent film,Killers of the Flower Moon, and countless more from the director’s legendary filmography.
One of those films is Raging Bull. It failed at the box office, and while it received eight Oscar nominations (winning two) and various awards from critics' bodies, Schoonmaker insists that it wasn’t truly appreciated for another 10 years, when it became a contender in Best Movie of All Time polls. It’s a pattern she’s since seen repeated again and again, with appreciation being in particularly short supply from the film studios.
“It happened continuously with Marty’s movies,” Schoonmaker stresses toTotal Film in our new issue, which featuresDune 2on the cover and is out this Thursday. “It’s only the last 10 years or so that he’s been acknowledged as the great director he is. Believe me, we had to fight tooth and nail [on] every one of those films to keep it being changed by the studio. And Marty would burn the film rather than give it up. We would win, but it would be a long, hard battle.”
You can read more from Schoonmaker, and a whole lot else besides, in the new issue of Total Film when it hits shelves and digital newsstands on Thursday, February 1. Check out the covers below:
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Jamie Graham is the Editor-at-Large of Total Film magazine. You’ll likely find them around these parts reviewing the biggest films on the planet and speaking to some of the biggest stars in the business – that’s just what Jamie does. Jamie has also written for outlets like SFX and the Sunday Times Culture, and appeared on podcasts exploring the wondrous worlds of occult and horror.
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